Neville Shulman Challenge Award 2027: Applications Open for Research Projects and Expeditions

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award 2027 offers two grants of up to £10,000 for challenging research projects and expeditions. Learn about eligibility, funding, project requirements, application deadline and how to apply through the Royal Geographical Society.

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award 2027 is now open for applications from individuals and groups with innovative research projects and expeditions designed to advance geographical knowledge.

Administered by the Royal Geographical Society (RGS), the award supports projects that explore the planet, its environments, cultures and peoples while encouraging applicants to take on significant physical and intellectual challenges.

For the 2027 funding round, two awards of up to £10,000 each will be available. The Royal Geographical Society expects the grant to provide the majority of the funding required to undertake the proposed project.

Applications are open until 8 January 2027, with interviews scheduled for 22 February 2027.

What Is the Neville Shulman Challenge Award?

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award was established in 2001 by Neville Shulman CBE.

Its purpose is to promote exploration and research that improves understanding of the world’s cultures, peoples and environments. At the same time, the award recognises the personal development that can come from overcoming the challenges involved in conducting field research or an expedition.

The programme is particularly suited to projects that combine geographical research, fieldwork, exploration and knowledge sharing.

Successful applicants are expected to demonstrate that their projects are challenging in two important ways: through the practical or physical demands of undertaking the work and through the significance and complexity of the issue being studied.

How Much Does the Award Provide?

The Royal Geographical Society offers:

Two awards each year

Funding of up to £10,000 per award

This can provide substantial support for an ambitious geographical research project or expedition.

The RGS states that it expects the grant to provide the majority of the funding needed to undertake the project. Applicants should therefore have a clear and realistic understanding of their anticipated costs and demonstrate how the proposed funding will help deliver the work.

What Projects Does the Award Support?

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award is intended for research projects and expeditions that contribute to geographical knowledge.

According to the RGS, proposed projects should have:

A significant physical or practical challenge.
A clearly defined research issue.
Potential to generate new insights.
Both local and global relevance.
A clear purpose to advance geographical knowledge.
Well-developed methods for collecting data.
Opportunities for findings to be shared widely.

This means applicants should go beyond describing where they want to travel or what they would like to explore. A successful proposal should establish a strong connection between the challenge, research question, methodology and expected contribution to geographical knowledge.

Who Can Apply?

Applications are welcomed from both individuals and groups.

This allows researchers, explorers and multidisciplinary teams to develop projects collaboratively or independently.

However, applicants should note one important restriction: projects directly relating to PhD or MSc research will not be accepted.

The proposed work should therefore be presented as an independent research project or expedition rather than as a direct component of a postgraduate degree.

Key Requirements for a Strong Application

Applicants should carefully consider how their proposed project meets the central aims of the award.

Demonstrate the challenge

The RGS wants applicants to explain why the project is challenging. This may involve the physical demands of the expedition, difficult environmental conditions, remote locations or the complexity of the subject being investigated.

Establish geographical significance

The project should clearly contribute to geographical understanding. Applicants should explain what is already known, what gap or problem they intend to investigate and what new knowledge their work could generate.

Explain the methodology

A credible method for collecting and documenting information is essential. The application should explain how observations, measurements, interviews, fieldwork or other forms of research will contribute to the project’s objectives.

Show wider relevance

Projects should contain elements of both local and global interest. This means findings from a particular environment, community or location should ideally connect with broader geographical, environmental, cultural or social questions.

Plan for knowledge sharing

The RGS highlights opportunities to share findings widely. Applicants should therefore think carefully about how project outcomes will reach audiences beyond the research team, whether through publications, educational resources, media, presentations or other appropriate channels.

Previous Neville Shulman Challenge Award Projects

Previous recipients demonstrate the broad range of work supported by the award.

In 2026, Lisa Drewe received an award for Attention All Shipping: Journeys Along Britain’s Fragile Island Edges. The project involved paddle and walking circumnavigations of 17 British islands and examined coastal connectivity through observations of coastal landforms, ecological signals and human activity.

The project also sought to identify data gaps, document community-led coastal responses and encourage participation in citizen science.

Another 2026 recipient, Iva Njunjić, received support for a speleological expedition to Komarnica Canyon in Montenegro. The project focused on documenting unexplored caves and unique cave organisms in an area threatened by proposed hydropower development. The research was intended to provide biodiversity evidence that could help inform conservation efforts.

Earlier recipients have undertaken projects examining subjects including indigenous communities, climate change, biodiversity, cultural heritage, remote environments, rivers and wilderness exploration.

For example, the 2025 projects included research into the Ustyurt Plateau in Central Asia and the Kalash communities of northern Pakistan.

These projects illustrate the award’s emphasis on combining challenging exploration with research that has wider geographical importance.

Application Deadline

The deadline for the Neville Shulman Challenge Award 2027 is:

8 January 2027

Applicants should submit their applications before the published deadline and ensure that all required information is complete.

The scheduled interview date is:

22 February 2027

Prospective applicants should therefore plan ahead and allow adequate time to develop a strong proposal.

How to Apply for the Neville Shulman Challenge Award

Applicants should begin by reviewing the Royal Geographical Society’s guidance for Society grant applicants.

The guidance contains information about the grants programme, application conditions, expectations for successful applicants and the process involved.

Applications and enquiries should be sent by email to:

grants@rgs.org

Before submitting, applicants should make sure their proposal clearly explains the project’s purpose, geographical significance, research methodology, challenges, expected outcomes and funding requirements.

A well-prepared proposal should make it easy for reviewers to understand why the project is important, why it is challenging and how the proposed work will advance geographical knowledge.

Why the Neville Shulman Challenge Award Is Important

Research in remote, under-documented or environmentally and culturally significant locations can be difficult to fund through conventional academic channels.

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award provides a targeted opportunity for applicants who are prepared to combine exploration with rigorous geographical research.

Its previous projects show that the award can support work addressing environmental change, biodiversity conservation, indigenous knowledge, cultural identity, climate impacts and geographical exploration.

The requirement for projects to have opportunities for broad knowledge sharing also increases the potential public value of supported research.

Important Points Before Applying

Applicants should remember that the award is not simply an expedition travel grant.

The proposed project needs to demonstrate a genuine contribution to geographical knowledge and explain how research will be conducted.

Applicants should also ensure that:

Their project has clear research objectives.
The physical or practical challenge is well explained.
The project’s geographical significance is easy to understand.
Data collection methods are clearly outlined.
There is a realistic financial plan.
The project has local and global relevance.
Results can be shared with wider audiences.
The proposal is not directly part of an MSc or PhD research project.

Neville Shulman Challenge Award 2027: Key Facts

Detail	Information
Award	Neville Shulman Challenge Award
Provider	Royal Geographical Society
Funding	Up to £10,000
Number of awards	Two
Applicants	Individuals and groups
Project type	Research projects and expeditions
Main focus	Advancing geographical knowledge
Funding expectation	Grant should provide the majority of project funding
MSc/PhD projects	Directly related proposals are not accepted
Application deadline	8 January 2027
Interview date	22 February 2027
Application email	grants@rgs.org

Final Thoughts

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award 2027 presents a valuable funding opportunity for researchers, explorers and teams with ambitious projects that seek to better understand the world’s environments, cultures and peoples.

With two grants of up to £10,000, the award can provide meaningful financial support for projects that combine fieldwork, exploration and rigorous geographical research.

The strongest applications are likely to be those that clearly demonstrate the project’s challenge, research value, methodology, geographical significance and potential to communicate findings to wider audiences.

Applicants should carefully review the Royal Geographical Society’s grant guidance and submit their applications by 8 January 2027.

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